Loving Leif

By Amber Kell

Leif is used to being alone but he guards his few friends with a vigilant eye. After hearing the mutants were planning to attack the Moon Pack he decides to ask Anthony for help in hunting down Lorus Korl, the psychotic scientist who created the mutants. When Blake, an ex-mutant agrees to accompany Leif to the Fae World. He isn’t sure what to make of the wolf shifter who claims they are soul mates and fated to be together.

Blake had been hoping to run into Leif now that he’d been reverted to his previous form. Upon learning Leif planned to wander into the Fae World alone he agrees to go along. After a sexy night of fun he knows Leif is his mate.

Rhaegar has waited year after lonely year for his mate. When two delicious shifters enter his world he knows he needs to convince them to stay. Unfortunately fate is fickle and Rhaegar might just lose his men before he’s had a chance make them his.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Amber Kell
• Release date: May 9, 2014
• ISBN: 9781310095399

Amber Kell

Amber Kell is a dreamer who has been writing stories in her head for as long as she could remember.She lives in Seattle with her husband, two sons, three cats and one very stupid dog. To learn more about her current books or works in progress, check out her blog at http://amberkell.wordpress.com.Her fans can also reach her at [e-mail].

Book preview

Prologue

Rhaegar paced from one end of his treasure-filled cave to the other, his tail slashing right and left as he walked. Even the happy crunch of gold coins beneath his claws didn’t induce its usual burst of joy.

Is it too much to want a mate? he asked the piles of gems and precious metals about him.

He wasn’t surprised when they didn’t answer.

Despite being the oldest of his kind, Rhaegar still hadn’t found anyone to share his cave with. He’d tried. He’d even spent years bedding every eligible dragon in his clutch—some of them more than once, just to be certain.

Nothing.

Centuries came and went, and he still hadn’t come any closer to finding a companion. Maybe the Fae King would keep his promise to help Rhaegar find his mate. Past experiences with the Fae didn’t make him optimistic that they would keep their end of any bargain. However, King Kylen had honest eyes and the love of a wolf shifter. If nothing else, the Fae King would follow through because he wouldn’t want to be shown as a liar in front of his mate. The fae were always more concerned with their reputation than reality.

Rhaegar wanted a relationship like the King had with his strong wolf, a partner who would stand by his side. None of the dragons in the mountain had proven to be the right match. Although they were fine for occasional romps in the treasure trove, they weren’t his forever lover. He wished their clutch still had a seer to guide him, but the last one had died over two hundred years ago, and she’d never been particularly helpful. She hadn’t even foreseen her own death.

You have a visitor, my lord. A deep rumbly voice interrupted Rhaegar’s isolation. He spun around to find his second-in-command, Hartmut, standing at Rhaegar’s cave entrance in his human form. Hart was his oldest friend and right-hand helper. In matters of interspecies relations, Hart always had the inside track. The fae might think this world was theirs, but the dragons only let them run it because they themselves weren’t an ambitious race. A good cave with lots of treasure kept dragons happy. Besides, if they didn’t have the Fae, where would they get all their gold?

Who’s visiting? Rhaegar forced his attention back to Hart’s statement, pretending to show interest.

Hart curled his lip, revealing a sharp fang. The Fae King. At least he brought his mate with him.

The dragons as a whole disliked the Fae for an ancient betrayal between the species. The long chain of corrupt Fae Kings hadn’t helped relations any. The bright honesty in Farro’s eyes soothed some of Rhaegar’s instinctive distrust of the new High Fae King. Rhaegar was withholding full approval of the royal until Kylen had ruled for a few centuries, though. The last king hadn’t been too bad before he turned insane.

Good, I like Farro.

Hart grunted. Who wouldn’t? I saw his pup in the woods yesterday; he’s fucking adorable. I sent word that harming the halfling is an automatic death sentence.

Good. Any species would rethink that approach if the pup had dragon protection. Go ahead and allow the Fae King passage.

Rhaegar closed his eyes and concentrated on transforming from dragon to human. He didn’t particularly enjoy his human shape. The weak protection of his bipedal flesh was a poor comparison to his mighty scales. However, he didn’t wish the Fae King to be uncomfortable, and remaining a dragon might be considered an act of aggression. At this time, Rhaegar needed King Kylen’s help if he wished to find a mate. He might not like the idea of having a fae partner, but since none of the dragons were his mate, he had to expand his search.

Greetings, Rhaegar. Kylen took two steps into the cave before giving a low, graceful bow.

Farro nodded, the proper greeting from one shifter to another when they weren’t in the same hierarchy.

Greetings, Fae King and King Mate. What brings you to my lowly accommodations?

Farro snorted. If by lowly you mean blindingly wealthy, I’d have to agree with you.

I thought we’d agreed I’d do the talking, Kylen scolded in an affectionate tone.

Farro folded his arms across his chest. Sorry, oh mighty king, please continue.

Rhaegar threw back his head and laughed, the sound echoing across the cave. It is nice to see you two again. How may I help you?

He doubted the two royals traipsed up the mountain for a purely social call.

It is more what we can do for you, Kylen corrected. We’re throwing a coronation party to celebrate joining the two kingdoms together. Since most of the Fae will be together in one place, I thought it would be a good time for you and a few of your companions to come and see if you can find your mates.

And what will we have to do in return? Nothing came for free. Despite their agreement, this was almost too good to be true.

Make sure I’m not killed at my own party. Kylen flashed Rhaegar a wry grin. Most of the Fae are on my side, but there’s always someone who thinks their favorite fae can do a better job. I need protection against them since I don’t know who to trust yet. People who guarded my back as a fellow soldiers might be just as likely to shove a sword through me now.

Farro growled softly. If anyone tries to hurt you, I will rip out their throat.

That won’t help me if they’ve already killed me, love. And I won’t put you in danger too. We can’t leave our son without his fathers.

And you trust me? Rhaegar didn’t bother to keep the surprise out of his voice. Watching over the King was a big responsibility, and not one he thought they’d give a dragon they barely knew.

You don’t have anything to gain by my death.

Kylen didn’t add that Rhaegar had a lot to lose if an assassination attempt on Kylen succeeded. Dragonkin might not be as lucky with the next Fae King. There had been some battles in the past in which both sides had lost a lot of people for no particular reason other than the Fae King wanted a war.

True. Rhaegar grinned. I’ll be happy to come help out.

He could think of several dragonkin who’d love to visit the Fae palace to seek their mates. Rhaegar wasn’t the only dragon waiting to find his other half. After the royals left, Rhaegar spent the rest of the afternoon daydreaming about finding his mate.

Chapter 1

Leif swooped across the field, tilting his wings to the right to take another aerial pass. He idly swirled in a tight loop as he examined the ground below. He’d followed the mutants into the trees, but they’d disappeared beneath the heavy foliage. Gliding lower, he landed on a branch as close to the mutants as he dared. He’d been watching Flen, the leader of the downtown mutants, for several days now. He didn’t trust him not to start something with the Moon Pack.

Although this small cell of mutants was happy with their new form, they resented the Moon Pack’s established territory. Leif suspected they still worshipped Lorus Korl, the Fae scientist who had created them, and supported his goals of taking over the world and setting himself up as its ruler. Leif just needed concrete evidence he could take back to Silver, the Moon Pack alpha. The wolf shifter wouldn’t attack the mutants without facts, and there were too many mutants to be certain which group were the ones that had attacked the pack building.

Leif suspected Korl still hid in the Fae World behind one of his worshippers. Maybe he could talk to Anthony about getting passage through a portal to hunt the scientist. The pack owed him a favor. It might be time to collect.

Korl had been responsible for the slaughter of Leif’s flock. In his search to increase his mutant army, Korl had tried to branch out into other species. None of the ravens had survived. He’d only been gone a week for a military buddy’s wedding, but he’d returned to find his entire family decimated. Leif had found their broken bodies rotting at the side of the road where Korl’s men had dumped them. The stench of mutants had soaked the area and wrenched Leif’s heart. They hadn’t even respected the ravens’ deaths enough to bury them.

Now Leif focused all his time and energy on hunting down Korl and making him pay. Good thing Leif had inherited all of his flock’s insurance money. It gave him the funds to pursue their killer.

We must take down the Moon Pack. Flen’s deep voice echoed across the small clearing as he addressed a group of twenty mutants. He marched back and forth as he spoke, his elongated limbs swaying unnaturally with each step. They will crumble if we destroy their leader. They are nothing but a bunch of puppies chasing their tails. Chop off their head, and they will fall beneath our will.

Leif fluffed his feathers. The cold air cut through his small body and whipped away his heat. For a moment, he envied the wolves their furry coats, even if he would never exchange a moment of warmth for the ability to fly.

How do we destroy Silver? He has his mate to protect him, another mutant piped up, breaking into Leif’s sad contemplation of the freezing night air.

Reviews for Loving Leif

[Tatys2673 · Rating: 5 out of 5 stars]

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